Try eating 5 or 6 small meals a day. Remember portion control. Start small. You won't starve when you consider eating again in 2 hours. This type of eating schedule will keep the metabolism burning all day. You won't feel bloated from trying to eat all the food groups in one meal.

Joined: 04 Jul 2007Posts: 231Location: Standing in the radiance of His glory.

Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2008 7:31 pm Post subject:

I hope you don't mind another perspective on the topic. While I agree about food grouping to a certain extend (although I lean more towards eating according to one's blood type), the concept of eating five or six meals a day really only works great IF you are highly active or are diabetic/hypoglycemic. It is a rather bad idea if you are not, in my opinion. My husband was a bodybuilding trainer and competitor. It was common for him to eat six meals a day due to his activity levels and building/maintaining muscle mass.

I have researched alternative health methods for over 20 years, I am my articles have been published for over 10 years, and I have about heard and seen it all over those years from the latest research and fads to the ideas from the early 1900's. I believe from my research that most adults would do better to eat only two meals a day or fast one or two days a week. Studies with animals suggest that this kind of fasting can actually prolong life and maintain better health overall.

The problem with eating so often every day is that the body does not get to rest and detoxify. Think about it! Nearly every organ in the mid to lower torso has something to do with the processing of food and the elimination of waste from food. Eating that often, even light meals, is going to make those organs work twice as much.

Eating is really an exercise in self discipline. Some people discipline themselves, but most just don't. Fasting helps one to learn self discipline in regards to eating and it also has benefits in other areas of your life. Fasting resets the metabolism, mostly because the body has had a change to throw off the toxins that blog down metabolic processes. Another benefit to fasting is that if you learn the discipline of it, you will lose weight and maintain a healthier weight as well.

I acknowledge that fasting completely without food is not medically feasible for some people, for them a juice fast may work. If one begins a fasting discipline oneself while one is healthy, many illnesses can be avoided. Most of the people in my family had Diabetes Type 2 by my age and had symptoms of hypoglycemia when they were young adults. I also had some hypoglycemic problems when I was younger, but I am convinced that fasting and eating mostly organic foods (less toxins) has cured me. I may completely avoid my family legacy or at least put it off for many years yet.

Eating half as much 6 times per day rather than the regular full amount 3 times per day keeps your metabolism running full throttle, which is good if you want to burn weight. It also means that your body has smaller amounts of food to work with during mealtimes, which means it's less likely to get overloaded (temporary elevated heart rate, higher blood pressure, etc.) I fail to see the problem? Your body is still going to get a rest while you sleep.

Regarding flushing toxins, that should just be a matter of plenty of liquids and a proper diet. Contrary to what some people think, fruit is not covered in dangerous amounts of pesticides, and mass-produced meat is actually less germ-ridden than "free-range" meat (though the you definitely still want to cook it...) On a limited budget, it's probably better to eat a wider variety of cheaper food, rather than a more limited variety of expensive "organic" food._________________Homeschool Articles - Events - Support Groups

Joined: 04 Jul 2007Posts: 231Location: Standing in the radiance of His glory.

Posted: Mon Jan 14, 2008 6:14 am Post subject:

Interesting opinion, Theodore.... I just have a few questions. Have you ever done any research on how fasts will reset the metabolism afterward? How the digestive processes are more efficient and, since the body has had time to strengthen the walls of the digestive tract, may even better protect us from some absorbing some chemicals into the entire body? Are you familiar with terms like body burden or chemical body load?

Most doctors will point out how the metabolism decreases during a fast, which is obvious, but they assume the body will store more afterwards and neglect to look at the real results after a disciplined fast when one comes off of it gently.

If you really want to a higher metabolism, the best way to get it is to exercise, a rigorous walk will do, for about 20 minutes in the morning and your metabolism will be increased for nearly half a day. Exercise for another 20 minutes in the afternoon and you will be sure to cover the entire day. In comparison, eating 5 to 6 meals a day will only "exercise" your digestive organs.

I know many obese people who are hungry all the time and most of the time there are two causes. One, they are eating the wrong foods for their blood type. Two, they are very toxic, which is obvious when one sees the results after a few cleanses and/or fasts.

I am not convinced, by the results I have seen, that it is a good idea to keep the digestive tract running in high gear all day every day by eating more than 3 meals a day, unless one is an active athlete. Basically, this practice keeps you from feeling hungry, so should you end up in a situation when you are hungry, you will still have not learned to discipline yourself in dealing with the hunger. It also trains the body into needing a steady intake to maintain blood sugar levels to function without drawing on its own reserves; I have always believed you eat towards your illness, so if one wants to eat like a diabetic must... well, I think you get the picture. I come from two families that all have the big three,...well, actually four: cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. So far, I am beating the odds for my age.

I've only gotten to read part of the book so far but I know of others who are actively following this program and are doing really well on it._________________"A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops." - Henry Adams

"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." ~ Aristotle

Wow!
Each person has different nutritional needs. I have friends who are vegans, vegetarians, gluten restricted, ... My teenaged son has scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis, relfux disease, and was recently diagnosed with crohn's disease. He is learning what will and won't work for his body now and through the stages of the diseases.

I have always weighed within the same weight range 111 -118 since a teenager. This didn't happen by chance or that I naturally have a fast metabolism. The exception was pregnancy.
The way I eat has changed as I have grown older. In the past few years, my experience is that eating minimal amounts of sugar/starch keeps the weight off. Menopause is a bit challenging. There are physiological reasons for weight gain, stomach distention, bloating, and increased risk for other maladies: hormone ratios, progesterone and estrogen change causing delays in stomach motility, causing food to stay in stomach longer. Progesterone contributes to hearburn relaxing lower esophageal sphincter, enzymes needed to break down food are not as efficient, which depending on what you eat can cause fermentation in the intestine, and so on. Speaking for me, it is better to eat 5 small meals a day. I am almost 52, have always exercised and still do, not a body builder, though. Five days a week for about one hour or more is my target. Exercise is a priority, especially now that I have rheumatoid arthritis. Sometimes it gets put off to another day or two when personal and family situations call for it.

If fasting works for you, then do it.
I have read some material about how fasting contributes to longevity. How much longer and is it worth giving up the pleasure of eating and feeling starved all the time? If the organs are overly stressed by working to digest 5 small amounts a day, wouldn't they be even more stressed by digesting a lot of food at one time? Eating a lot at one meal makes me sluggish. What is the purpose of disciplining my hunger and to what extreme? How about the discipline of fueling the body with quality foods. There are times I have forgotten to eat with no effect and other times I feel shaky and sick and need to eat. Is that what you mean by undisciplined? Just because I don't fast by eating only 2 meals daily, doesn't mean my hunger is undiscplined. The body may have different needs at different times.
I read somewhere that fasting one day a month is benefical. But, I don't know how beneficial compared to weekly.

Joined: 04 Jul 2007Posts: 231Location: Standing in the radiance of His glory.

Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2008 6:51 am Post subject:

Regina Hogsten wrote:

Wow!
Each person has different nutritional needs. I have friends who are vegans, vegetarians, gluten restricted, ... My teenaged son has scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis, relfux disease, and was recently diagnosed with crohn's disease. He is learning what will and won't work for his body now and through the stages of the diseases.

You really should google those conditions with the word "fasting." I cannot remember where right now, but I just read an article on fasting in some cases as cured Crohn's Disease. Fasting in general aids the healing process because the body is not using so much of its resources to digest food. It actually increases the level of growth hormones and may do so for other horomones.

Regina Hogsten wrote:

I have read some material about how fasting contributes to longevity. How much longer and is it worth giving up the pleasure of eating and feeling starved all the time? If the organs are overly stressed by working to digest 5 small amounts a day, wouldn't they be even more stressed by digesting a lot of food at one time? Eating a lot at one meal makes me sluggish. What is the purpose of disciplining my hunger and to what extreme? How about the discipline of fueling the body with quality foods. There are times I have forgotten to eat with no effect and other times I feel shaky and sick and need to eat. Is that what you mean by undisciplined? Just because I don't fast by eating only 2 meals daily, doesn't mean my hunger is undiscplined. The body may have different needs at different times.
I read somewhere that fasting one day a month is benefical. But, I don't know how beneficial compared to weekly.

Fasting is a discipline, hunger is natural, but for some hunger is not really hunger, it is habit and/or lack of meeting nutritional needs so the body is truly hungry almost all the time. Fasting can break such habits and help one to want to eat more nutritious foods. Oh, and those foods that seem so ordinary and even bland taste so much better after fasting.

I used to feel the same way you do, until I actually did a few. At first, I did them as an experiment for health benefits, but now I also do them for spiritual reasons. There is nothing like denying the flesh for a time to feed the spirit and seek the Lord. Besides that, I had my daughter late in life; I would like to see my grandchildren and be in good enough health to enjoy them, maybe even help homeschool them, too, so I am in it for the longevity factor as well.

By the way, starvation and fasting are to very different things. One has to fast for 30 to 40 days to reach the starvation level. You really don't feel hungry after a few days, if you are doing a prolonged fast and, if you are only fasting a day, you should have no real problems with dealing with the hunger.

However, fasting is really a discipline, you should not just jump into it. Skipping a meal is not really fasting. Skipping a meal sometimes just happens, but fasting is planned with purpose. I recommend preparing at least 3 days before you actually stop eating, by eating increasing less raw foods, sprouts, juices, and broths, then fasting only one day and taking three days coming back off the fast by steadily increasing with the same types of foods. Next time trying 2 days, then 3. The third day is usually the most uncomfortable. If you feel confident with fasting 3 days then I would go to 5 days. After that you pretty much can do it for how long you wish. Around the 5th to 7th day, you usually feel pretty good and you don't feel a desire for food. I am talking here about a water only fast. If you do a fresh juice fast, then the discomforts that go with fasting are minimized. I also do juice fasts when I would like to fast, but life is demanding of me at the time. Juice fasting is a good way to start learning about fasts and it will keep you from getting the shakes.

Actually, when I come off a prolonged fast, I nearly feel like I have to force myself to eat. The food smells very good during the fast, actually all senses are heighten, but for me it is like coffee: I love the smell, but it tears up my stomach and makes me jittery, so I don't drink it. I also definitely eat much less than before the fast. The body really digests the food much better, so you can eat much less and be satisfied (that saves some grocery money). Fasting also makes you more in tune with your body's signals and I find that I am more willing to push away from the table with food still on my plate.

I don't see doing without food now and then as depriving myself, because the benefits are so well worth it. General aches and pains literally disappear in the first few days. I am typically a slow healer, but fasting really speeds up my healing. There have been times when I have not done a prolonged fast for a long time that I will feel sensations on different days. This could be a deeper release of toxins/healing that I have not experienced previously. For instance, if I have had a stiffness in particular muscles or joints, those areas on certain days may have an increase in tenderness, but then afterward they could feel fine and more relaxed for many weeks.

The worse side of fasting is the social aspect. Nearly everything we do with other people is centered around food. I don't have a problem with it, but the people around me seem uncomfortable eating when I am not.

By the way, when my husband ate 5 to 6 meals a day, he fasted one day a week and this is when he was training for competitions before we met.

Might make good sense for Crohn's Disease, that doesn't necessarily mean that healthy people need to fast, aside from of course religious expression._________________Homeschool Articles - Events - Support Groups

About 10 years ago I read an article that said we have become so bad in our culture at recognizing true hunger, and we so often throw food at any negative emotion or physical need, that we identify thirst and a need for exercise as hunger.

The solution in the article was when you think you feel hungry, get a drink of water--a whole 8 ounces--and wait 20 minutes. Then, if you still feel "hungry," drink another 8 ounces and then go for a walk (or do some other aerobic exercise) and then drink another 8 ounces and wait 20 more minutes. Only if you still feel hungry after all that did the author give permission to actually eat.

I've experimented with this a lot ever since, and it works very well for improving my health!

I find it quite easy to fast, especially when I'm concentrating on something, but as I tend more towards underweight than overweight, that's not really an asset. I have to keep reminding myself to eat something.